


same star

by neradia3



Series: soulmates and cosmic love -- rosabel [2]
Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: After 2x13, F/F, Isobel's really sad and needs to be loved plz and thx, Soulmate AU, cosmic love, halloween the movie not the holiday, idk who he is, kind of, mentions of rehab, no clone!Max
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-27
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:13:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24936613
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neradia3/pseuds/neradia3
Summary: That feeling when you wake up before your alarm and the person you love is still asleep and they're kind of snoring a little bit. It's like the best thing that's ever happened to you.Or...Michael has his cosmic love and so does Max, but what about Isobel? Maybe it's been right there all along.
Relationships: Isobel Evans/Rosa Ortecho
Series: soulmates and cosmic love -- rosabel [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2056509
Comments: 12
Kudos: 28





	same star

**Author's Note:**

> So after I saw Alexandria (heartfullofelves)'s comment on "letting go" about what Isobel said in the finale ("waking up next to the person you love" bit), I was like: wait... And then a few people and I on discord were talking about soulmate AUs and I was like: wait... 
> 
> And now this story is a thing! :D

Six months.

Six months since the mess that was CrashCon. 

Six months since everyone seemed to disperse, go off and do their own thing. 

Max is still playing deputy, Michael is still getting drunk every other night at the Wild Pony while trying his damnedest to avoid Alex, Liz is still in California, Maria is still running the Wild Pony, Kyle is still saving lives practically every day while sometimes spending nights at Planet 7, Rosa... Rosa is still away at rehab, getting herself better, using the money that Noah got through day trading. And Isobel?

She still aches.

She sometimes goes to Planet 7 with Kyle, then leaves past midnight with another woman's hand in her own with the intention of getting laid. And she does. Sometimes. It's been Blaire a few times, this woman named Cindy once, another named Hannah enough times that Isobel has lost count. 

She sometimes runs events, as that is her job. Events for work organizations, birthday parties--both kid and adult, holiday events, school events like homecoming. 

She sometimes sits alone in the Crashdown Cafe, drinking coffee at the bar, starting up a conversation with Arturo, wondering how his Instagram page to promote the diner is coming along. He's been gaining lots of followers, which means more customers, more profit. 

Sometimes, she's completely alone. No, it feels like that all the time. 

* * *

The first time she slept with Hannah, she thought she was _the one._ She stayed with Isobel until morning, held her close as they slept. Gave her sweet kisses to her head, her shoulder, even her button nose. _That's my favorite thing about you,_ Isobel remembers her saying into her ear as they made out against Isobel's bedroom wall. _Your nose is so cute._ She broke the kiss just to boop it with her fingertip, causing Isobel to giggle. And Isobel _does not_ giggle. 

Hannah made her coffee the next morning, kissed her on the lips before kissing her on her nose. Isobel was actually happy then. It was so domestic that Isobel's stomach filled with butterflies. 

But the more she slept with Hannah, the more they spent their mornings together, Isobel started to lose those butterflies. She started not to feel anything at all, back to feeling alone even though Hannah was snuggled up to her on the couch. 

And after that, she avoided Hannah completely whenever she saw her at Planet 7, bringing another woman home instead. That didn't make it any better. 

She was back to feeling like an empty shell. She still feels like that. 

She is feeling like that, even as she sits on the roof of the Crashdown, staring up at the stars, thinking about her mom. What would she say to Isobel?

_Time is an extraordinary concept. It has its own way of making things you want happen when it's right._

Or...

_They'll find you, my little star. Don't worry._

Or...

_It'll happen when you least expect it._

Or... 

_They're probably right in front of you, but you're too blind to see it._

Well, that one's a bit more harsh. She doesn't know her mother, has never met her, at least that's what her memories tell her. How would she know what she would say? But from what she's heard from Sanders, Louise was a sweet woman, one that he considered family, along with Nora and Roy Bronson. Although she doesn't have her mother, she still has Max and Michael. 

She grips on to one of the metal bars of the Crashdown sign. At least she's not the only alien that doesn't have their love life together, perfect like she dreamed that it would be. Despite that, Michael and Max have already found their "cosmic love." Why hasn't she found her own?

Isobel hears the door to the roof open and rolls her eyes. It's probably Max, here to drag her ass back home. But Max's voice doesn't travel through her ears, saying something like, _Isobel, it's late. Time to go home._ He said something along those lines the last few times he fetched her from the roof. Instead, there's silence. Weird. 

She frowns and looks to her left. A familiar face stands a bit away from the ladder, hands shoved in her coat pockets. Her dark hair is curled, all laying over one shoulder. Her lips are parted. Isobel can see her breath in the chilly air. After a few seconds, her vision begins to blur, water pooling on her lower eyelids. Good thing her mascara is waterproof, right?

"Oh my god." Isobel climbs down from the sign and crashes into her arms without any hesitation. "Rosa."

And suddenly, she doesn't feel so alone anymore.

She holds Rosa close, as if she hasn't seen her in years. It feels like it has been years anyway. "I missed you," she whispers.

She missed her? Maybe she just didn't realize it. 

It takes a moment for Rosa to hug her back, processing Isobel's quick motion. Right when she does, she buries her head in Isobel's shoulder. "I missed you too."

Isobel sniffles. "It's literally been hell without you here." 

"Oh, come on, Izzie." Rosa rubs gentle circles on her back. "It couldn't have been that bad. I was going to come back no matter what. My home is in Roswell, you know that." She pulls away from Isobel's embrace. "Well, I'm here n--" She stops and raises her eyebrows. The light of the Crashdown sign captures the tear streaks on Isobel's cheeks. "It was hell without me here, wasn't it?" Rosa wipes away Isobel's tears with her thumb. 

Isobel isn't sure she can answer that. She did say that it was hell without having Rosa in Roswell, but maybe that's because she started spiraling once she left. She doesn't say anything in response to Rosa's question. All she can do is close her eyes and lean into the touch of Rosa's cold palm on her cheek. 

When Rosa pulls her hand away, Isobel starts to miss it. "Why don't we get you home, okay? It's almost one A.M."

Isobel shakes her head. She knows that if Rosa takes her home, she'll leave her. She'll be alone again, and she can't stand the feeling anymore. 

"Isobel, you can't stay out here all night. It's cold. And even though you're an alien, that doesn't mean you're immune to freezing temperatures." She grabs Isobel's hand, and Isobel doesn't really seem to register it. How out of it is she?

"If you take me home, will you stay?" Isobel asks, her voice shaking a little. It is getting rather cold. Her fingertips, they feel numb. She doesn't remember how long she was out on the Crashdown roof--probably since sundown. "Please? I can't--"

"Of course I'll stay. Whatever you need, Isobel."

* * *

Isobel can't sleep. No matter how hard she tries, her body wants to stay awake, staring up at the ceiling as Rosa sleeps soundlessly next to her. She usually doesn't have a hard time sleeping, especially if it isn't just her in bed, but she's restless. She won't shut off. She can't find the switch that puts her into sleep mode. Her eyes stay open, taking in the darkness of her bedroom. 

She's not sure why she can't sleep, and just thinking about it is keeping her more awake. It could be Rosa's presence in general. She's too afraid to close her eyes, then reopen them to find that Rosa's not there anymore. It could be that she's been sleeping too much for the past several weeks, sometimes sleeping a few hours during the day because all of the negative emotions pouring out of her is making her tired. It could be that she can't stop thinking about what happened between her and Rosa some time after they walked through the front door. 

Isobel took off her coat and hung it up on one of the wall hooks. Rosa decided to keep her's on, and the two wandered off into the kitchen, sitting down together at the island. Isobel made them tea to warm up. 

Two mugs sat on the counter, one was red--and she couldn't help but give that one to Rosa because it reminded her of her name--and the other was one that Isobel always used as a kid. It was flower-patterned and a pastel pink color. She remembered Ann giving it to her one year for Christmas after asking so many times for her own special mug. 

They were now filled with tea from the Keurig, and Isobel handed Rosa her's. She watched as Rosa wrapped her hands around the mug, feeling its warmth against her skin, before climbing back into her seat next to Rosa. 

It was silent at first, except for the quiet sound of sipping and sometimes a hum that would follow. There was also the slight ticking sound of the clock that was coming from the living room. Despite the silence, Isobel was glad to have Rosa's company. She felt more... whole when Rosa was around. And she couldn't be anymore glad that Rosa was finally back from rehab. 

She cleared her throat. "Do you want to talk about what's been going on while I was gone? Why you're so... distraught?" She took a sip of her tea. "You know I'm here for you, Izzie, right?"

"Yes, I know. It's just been a lot. It's overwhelming." Isobel shook her head. "But I don't like keeping you in the dark, so you're lucky, Ortecho."

Rosa chuckled and turned a bit in her chair to face Isobel, her elbow resting on the counter top and her head leaning against the palm of her hand. "I'm listening."

Isobel pushed her tea aside. She kept her eyes straight ahead on the kitchen faucet that sometimes dripped. She really needed to get that fixed. "I've been going to Planet 7 more, and sometimes Kyle would come along."

"Planet 7? Isn't that Roswell's gay bar?" She laughed. "I can't see Kyle going to a gay bar."

"Yeah. I was surprised at first too. But um, I thought I was going to start this relationship with this woman I met there named Hannah." Her eyes left the faucet to meet with the marble of the counter top. "It was nice for about a month, and then I wasn't feeling it anymore. It had nothing to do with her. It was me. I started thinking that maybe I'm broken, that I'll never be able to find love again after Noah..."

Rosa reached out and placed her hand just above Isobel's knee. "It's okay."

Isobel whimpered, biting her bottom lip to keep herself from crying. She was way over what happened with Noah, but admitting to herself that Noah could be the reason that she might be unable to love again stung deep. It hurt, burned in her chest. She was angry and upset at the same time. "I'm sorry. I hate when people see me like this."

"Like what, Isobel?" 

"Fragile. I'm practically shattered glass." 

"Well, maybe I can help bring those pieces back together." Rosa grinned. "Why don't we watch a movie or something, hmm? It'll take your mind off of everything. You know, something cheesy or a horror movie? Not any of those stupid, unrealistic romcoms."

Isobel giggled. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I actually agree with you on that."

"Then c'mon." Rosa hopped off the bar-stool-like chair and gestured for Isobel to do the same, which she did. She settled her hand on Isobel's back and guided her into the living room. "Let's get spooked."

* * *

The two sat close, very close, a blanket draped over their shoulders. Isobel tugged on one end as she cuddled into Rosa's side, her head leaning against Rosa's. They were watching a horror movie, like Rosa suggested, specifically _Halloween._

When Rosa found out that there was a new one released in 2018, she immediately purchased it off of Amazon Video. But because of the many things that happened in Roswell after her resurrection, she never got around to watching it. On this cold, late night, she finally got to, and while Isobel was in her arms. Isobel didn't mind watching a horror movie with Rosa, but at the more gory scenes, she'd whimper and bury her head in Rosa's shoulder. Rosa would stroke her hair and tell her when it was over. 

Now they were about half way through. Michael Myers was still on his killing spree, and was seconds away from killing another person. Isobel was slowly getting used to these scenes as she took notice of how similar they all were, mostly by how he was killing people. 

She liked the way Rosa stroked her hair, calmed her and told her that everything was okay, that it was going to be over soon. It made her feel safe and at home. It made her feel relaxed and easy. It made her feel... things, things that she shouldn't feel, especially towards Rosa Ortecho. But she did, she did feel these things, and she wasn't going to ignore them. She knew that they were real, not Noah's doing. _He is dead,_ she had to remind herself. _He can't control you now._

Isobel hummed and nuzzled into Rosa's shoulder. "Thank you, for doing this for me. I really missed having you around. It's like you understand me when no one else does," she mumbled. 

"That is what having friends feels like, Isobel. I've never really had friends, excluding Liz and my old, fake friends like Kate and Jasmine. I mean, friends that are always there for you when you need them. Friends that care about you and love you no matter what. Friends that keep you safe from harm." She paused and started stroking Isobel's blonde locks, just how she liked it. "We've been through a lot, but we have each other. Always." 

A sudden scream echoed through the T.V., which caused Isobel to jump a little. She wasn't really watching the movie anymore, so she wasn't expecting it. 

Rosa chuckled and held Isobel close. "You're such a scared-y cat, you know, all things considered." 

Isobel whined. "Friends poke fun at each other too?"

"Sometimes. When it isn't harsh. You know, I wouldn't do anything to hurt you, right?"

Isobel lifted her head to look at Rosa. Her breath was caught in her throat, her head spinning in circles, her heart beating so fast, she could feel it through all of the softness Rosa was currently giving her. She wondered if maybe her mom possibly saying that love was right in front of her and she was too blind to see it wasn't harsh at all, but the clear truth. 

There was a reason she kept going back to Rosa, like she was ingrained in her brain. Why Isobel missed her so much even though she didn't realize it until she said it. Why Isobel felt so miserable without her in Roswell, at her side. Why Isobel wanted to be around her all the time. This time, it had nothing to do with Noah. These feelings were very much her own. 

Why didn't she just open her fucking eyes? She could've seen that Rosa was her "cosmic love" the entire time. Maybe the Evans "twins" just have a thing for the Ortecho sisters. She laughed internally to herself. Who would've thought?

"Izzie? Isobel?" Rosa's hand rubbed her arm, trying to bring her back from whatever space she was staring in. 

"Hmm?" Isobel shook her head. "Sorry, I was just, um--"

"Are you okay?"

Isobel swore then that the gentleness in Rosa's voice made her melt. She wished she could hear that tone from Rosa all the time. "I was just thinking. Don't worry." She caressed Rosa's cheek, her thumb brushing along it. She tilted her head to the side, watching Rosa melt too under her touch. Now they were both puddles on the couch. Neither of them were paying any attention to the movie anymore, only each other. 

"You know, Isobel?" Rosa rested her hand on top of Isobel's before taking it off her cheek. She settled their hands together right in between their laps. "You've changed so much since high school, a good kind of change. You being so nice to me is something I never thought would happen, like ever. You've done so many things to help me, and I can't thank you enough. When you reunited me with my family, I've never been so happy in my life. You... you make me happy, Isobel."

"Yeah?" Isobel chuckled and brought her hand out of Rosa's to tuck a stray curl behind her ear. "You make me happy, too."

"I do?"

"Mm hmm. I think you always have."

Rosa bowed her head. 

"I mean, not always always, but after Max brought you back to life..."

"No, I know what you mean, Izzie," Rosa whispered. "I didn't count high school in that."

"Right, of course. I--" Isobel could hear Michael Myers chasing Laurie Strode around her house now. Her screams crawled under Isobel's skin. She moved a bit out of Rosa's embrace and reached forward for the remote, turning off the T.V. She set the remote back down on the oddly-shaped coffee table. Her focus was back on Rosa. She liked this quiet. She felt like they were the only people on Earth, that the world surrounded them and only them. "Hey." Isobel slid her index along Rosa's jaw, guiding her head up. "I meant what I said. Every word of it."

Rosa turned a bit more towards Isobel, her hand finding Isobel's waist. "It's not that."

"Is something wrong, Rosa?" Isobel asked. "Did I say something--"

"No, you didn't. I'm fine. It's--" Rosa sighed. "I've never met anyone like you. And even after everything in high school and Noah, I'm still running back to you. I can't stop running back to you. Maybe it's because we understand each other and what we've been through. Or the universe has this plan to keep us together, that our destinies are somehow aligned or something."

"Born from the same star," Isobel muttered.

"What?"

"It's kind of a long story, but Alex and Michael found Tripp's--Alex's great uncle--journal written for Maria's grandmother, and in the journal, that was how he described his love for Nora. Now, I'm not exactly sure how love worked back on our planet, but it seems like aliens tend to fall in love with specifically one human that they create a deep bond with. And they'll only ever feel love for that one person." Isobel looked away from Rosa. "It happened to Max. He was in love with Liz in high school and within the ten years of being without her, he never moved on. It happened to Michael. He loves Alex, and told me that he always will. Louise, she loved Roy Bronson, the first human that she ever met who was actually nice to her, protected her, saved her life. And Nora--"

Rosa's hand trailing up and down Isobel's side stopped her from continuing on. Isobel met her eyes again. "So you... you think that we were born from the same star... figuratively? And that's why there's this never-ending pull? That's why I couldn't stop thinking about you while I was away? How much I wanted to come back home and see you. I literally ran out of those doors because I couldn't wait to see you again. And it was like I knew you were going to be on the roof of the Crashdown."

Isobel smiled. "At least once a week while you were away at rehab, I would sit on the roof until Max would drag me home. He would tell me to stop going up there and staying until absurd hours of the night, but I couldn't stop. Every time I'd go up there, it was like I was waiting for you to come back. And when you finally did, I--"

"Holding you was the best feeling--"

"--I could ever feel," Isobel finished, and started to lean in. She glanced down at Rosa's lips, and she knew Rosa was glancing at her own. She could feel it. Yet, before their noses could touch, she stopped. 

Rosa frowned at the sudden halt in Isobel's movements, the beginning of what could be a sweet, delicate kiss. "Isobel?" She moved her hand from Isobel's waist to her cheek. "It's okay. I want this too. If you're scared, you don't--"

She kissed her. She kissed Rosa Ortecho. 

Isobel traces her fingertips over her lips, trying to remember what it felt like. Soft, like a cloud. No, a pillow. Her lips were wrapped in a blanket of warmth. It was like eating her favorite food for the first time--a new feeling, one that she wanted to experience over and over again. And she wanted more. 

She felt sparks, literal sparks, like fireworks. Or maybe it was just Rosa losing control of her powers because of all of the emotions she was probably feeling in that moment. Behind her closed eyes, she saw stars, glowing and exploding, colliding. She would do anything to feel that again. To kiss Rosa again. And again. And again. And--

"Isobel? Are you awake?" Rosa mumbles from beside her. Isobel feels the comforter shift. Rosa is stretching, a high-pitched whine leaving her lips. "Izzie?"

Isobel turns on her side towards Rosa and reaches her hand out to touch her arm. "I'm awake. Do you need anything? Is everything okay?"

Rosa hums. "Can you hold me?"

"Yeah." Isobel slides over to the other side of the bed and pulls Rosa in, spooning her, holding her close just like she wants. She presses a soft, slow kiss to Rosa's shoulder, before burying her head in her hair. She breathes in the scent of the rosemary lavender of Rosa's shampoo. And she can finally close her eyes and find sleep, knowing the next morning that Rosa will still be there, in her arms. 

She imagines waking up to the sun shining through the curtains and seeing Rosa still asleep in her arms, snoring a little. 

_It's like the best thing that's ever happened to you._


End file.
